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{{trope}}{{Needs Image}}
{{quote|'''V''': I fell in love with you, Evey, like I no longer believed I could.
'''Evey''': Then I don't want you to die!
'''V''': That's the most beautiful thing you could have ever given me.
|''[[V for Vendetta]]''}}
Death seems imminent for a character. Her grief-stricken [[Love Interests]] who has been doing the [[Will They or Won't They?]] sidestep with her decides that he'd better let clean with his feelings for her or else he'll have to live with the thought of [[Never Got to Say Goodbye|never having said it to her]].
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May include a [[Now or Never Kiss]] (but hopefully not a [[Last Kiss]]).
Oftentimes, it turns out that the person is actually [[Not Quite Dead]], usually right after the confessor declares his feelings, and he tries to back out of what he just said. Or the revelation that she'll live comes right before the critical word (a [[Last
Has a 50:50 chance of being subverted nowadays, but far from being a [[Discredited Trope]]. Common subversions include the confessed-to becoming irritated that it took a death threat for the confessor to ''finally'' overcome his [[Cannot Spit It Out]] problem, the dying person faking it, or helpfully pointing out that the death bed is not the most ideal place to say those words. In some cases, the person who's about to die (or otherwise lose any chance of being with his or her beloved) will consider doing this, but decide not to for certain reasons, such as not causing undue anguish to the person he or she is going to leave behind, making this an [[Aborted Declaration of Love]].
A kinkier variation of this is the "we're going to die tomorrow, and [[You Don't Want to Die
Formerly known as [[Going Down
{{examples}}▼
{{deathtrope}}
== Anime and Manga ==▼
▲{{examples}}
▲== Anime and Manga ==
* ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'': Misato brings the [[Subtext]] between her and Shinji out in the open {{spoiler|when she's fatally shot in the back}}.
** Although that could have been Misato just desperately saying ''anything'' that came to mind to try and get an emotional reaction out of Shinji, who was slipping at least halfway into a [[Heroic BSOD]] at the time. While {{spoiler|dying of blood loss and thus not thinking entirely clearly.}}
*** This wouldn't be the first time, though. Misato made a pass at Shinji while they were both still grieving a few deaths. Even if it's just to comfort and motivate him (and/or herself,) her choice of the means was a little too convenient a trend.
* Played straight in ''[[X 1999]]'', when {{spoiler|Seishirou's}} last words to {{spoiler|Subaru as he was dying in his arms}} are... actually we never get to hear what they were, but you can take the obvious guess along with everyone else.
* At the end of ''[[Kannazuki no Miko]]'', Chikane declares her love to Himeko, after {{spoiler|being mortally wounded by Himeko herself, which was [[Xanatos Gambit|all part of her plan]]... a plan that hits a bit of a snag when Himeko declares ''her'' love for Chikane. [[The Power of Love|That]] pretty much triggers a string of events that ends in a subversion of this trope as Chikane returns to Himeko after being [[Ret
* The finale of ''[[Code Geass]]''' first season has C.C. offer words of encouragement to Lelouch, then kiss him (much to his obvious surprise) before she goes down with the [[Humongous Mecha]] in order to deal with an [[Axe Crazy]] pursuer. Lelouch seems to have written it off as part of her [[Mysterious Waif]] powers, as neither of them brought the issue up in the second season.
** The novelization says that he instinctively knew the kiss wasn't out of love, but rather a failsafe measure should he be captured.
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** In the movie, Michel {{spoiler|survives}}, instead the dying declaring of love is given to {{spoiler|Alto who confesses to Sheryl, before he either dies or is folded into another galaxy}}.
* {{spoiler|Mireille}}, in the [[Grand Finale]] of ''[[Noir]]'', to {{spoiler|Kirika, who's about to fall into a volcanic vent with [[Big Bad]] Altena}}. Leads to a [[Take My Hand]] moment.
* ''[[
* ''[[Full Metal Panic!|Full Metal Panic Fumoffu]]'' plays with this in the last episode, where a supposed biological agent infects the class and they all think they're going to die. Sagara asks Kaname to take her clothes off and she debates whether they should [[You Don't Want to Die
* ''[[Naruto]]'': {{spoiler|In chapter 437, Hinata goes to help Naruto against Pain. When he says that she can't possibly win and asks why she's there, she responds that Naruto changed her life and that as a result, she's not afraid to die protecting him [[Anguished Declaration of Love|because she loves him]]. Pain quickly defeats and stabs her, and while this initially seems to be playing the trope straight, she survives with Sakura's help. All that remains is to see how Naruto reacts}}.
** Which could take a while, since {{spoiler|the current world war is currently occupying their attention}}.
* In ''[[
* Technically, she doesn't die, but the effect is still the same as {{spoiler|Ixpellia}} from ''[[Audio Adaptation|StrikerS Sound Stage X]]'' of the ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' franchise tells Subaru that she loves her as she rests in Subaru's arms and falls into a [[Convenient Coma|deep sleep that would last for ten years... or a thousand]].
* In ''[[Rave Master]]'', when Haru and Elie finally confess their feelings for one another Haru is about to die. {{spoiler|He doesn't, of course. And while the viewers find that out in the next chapter, it's a whole year before he wakes up after suposedly being killed and gets reunited with Elie}}.
* Simon, from ''[[Fairy Tail]]'' does not admit his feelings to Erza until he's three seconds from dying. Subverted in that he never actually confesses to her (he just thinks it, and [[Everyone Can See It|all his friends knew]]). He did try to tell her once ''eight years ago'' but was interupted by an attack, since he [[What an Idiot!|decided to tell her while she was leading a rebellion]].
* In ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro
* From ''[[Katanagatari]]'' episode 12 - {{spoiler|the mortally wounded Togame asks Shichika if it's alright for her to have fallen in love with him for real, after also admitting that he was a pawn in her scheme and she meant to kill him at the journey's end}}.
* In ''[[
* [[The Ditz|Patrick]] attempts to invoke the trope in the final battle of ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam 00]]''. When a [[Suicide Attack|Gaga]] tries to crash into his [[Subordinate Excuse|superior and love interest]]'s ship, he promptly nails the bad guy in a [[You Shall Not Pass]]... only for the next Gaga to charge out of the smoke straight into him. He just smiles and says "I did really love you, Kati..." right before the Gaga explodes, provoking a [[Say My Name]] from her. Subverted in that not only the explosion didn't kill him (he's not called Colasour the [[Determinator|Indestructible]] for nothing...), he later married her.
* Inverted in ''[[
* An ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' example comes in the dub, when England is dying after an incident involved a penjandrum and Scotland. America rushes to England's bedside and is clearly distressed. England manages to say, "America, I'm in lo-" before the Grim Reaper cuts him off. He recovers, but the shippers absolutely ''exploded''.
* Since even mentioning the name of the series is a spoiler, here: {{spoiler|in ''[[
* [[Tear Jerker|Heartbreakingly]] [[Subverted Trope|subverted]] by {{spoiler|Judeau}} in [[Berserk]]. He tries to do this with {{spoiler|Casca}}, but can't quite say it, and only manages a comment on how she's crying. His last thoughts are "That's it!? Those are my last words!?".
* {{spoiler|Stella}} in ''[[Gundam Seed Destiny]]''. She even manages to say "I love you", while [[Third Person Person|she was never able to use first and second person]] like this before.
* {{spoiler|Joe}} from [[Ashita no Joe]] ''sorta'' does this to {{spoiler|Youko, telling her to keep [[Tragic Keepsake|his boxing gloves]]. And then [[It Was His Sled|THAT scene]] comes almost immediately afterwards.}} (It should be noticed that {{spoiler|the original Japanese was much more subtle, but [[Dub Text|the Italian dub makes it a direct example]] as Joe straightforwardly tells Youko that the gloves area proof of his love for her}}).
* In [[Sankarea]], {{spoiler|Chihiro is about to be eaten by Rea (not to mention the two of them are in a building that's about to burn down). Despite the fact that she's about to kill him, Chihiro tells Rea that he likes her a lot and doesn't mind that he's about to die.. Of course, the [[Power of Love]] saves them both}}
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* Cruelly subverted in the ''Beyond!'' miniseries. [[Spider
▲* Cruelly subverted in the ''Beyond!'' miniseries. [[Spider Man]] gets killed by Venom and dies proclaiming his love to Mary Jane...or so he thought. He's actually so delirious from his wounds that he mistook [[Prehensile Hair|Medusa]] for his wife. Medusa got the sentiment though, and was so upset that she very nearly executed Venom. {{spoiler|And further subverted in that it wasn't actually Spider-Man, and he wasn't actually dead.}}
* In ''[[The Man
▲* In ''[[The Man With No Name (Fanfic)|The Man With No Name]]'', {{spoiler|while escaping the enemy stronghold, Mal confesses to Inara while [[Now or Never Kiss|throwing in a kiss with it]], which also serves to distract her long enough for him to pull a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] by [[You Shall Not Pass|running back and holding off the approaching mooks]]}}.
== Film ==
* Subversion in the film ''[[Almost Famous]]'': When the plane hits a storm, the band members start making admissions to each other. William takes this opportunity to confess to Penny that he loves her, except she's not on the plane to hear it and she never finds out.
* Played straight in the ''[[Tiny Toon Adventures]]'' movie, in which the cast is being pursued on an ''[[
* In the movie ''[[Firefly|Serenity]]'', as the crew is besieged by the ravenous Reavers, Simon finally manages to get over his [[Cannot Spit It Out|lack of confidence]] and confesses his feelings to Kaylee. Kaylee's response? "Hell with this, I'm gonna live!"
* Played with in ''[[
* ''[[Independence Day]]'' toys with the "don't want to die a virgin" variant twice. In the first instance, after the alien ship appears over Los Angeles, teenaged Alicia Casse's then-boyfriend tries using "do you want to die a virgin?" to persuade her to have sex with him, but is foiled by the arrival of her older brother. Later in the film, Alicia herself tells another boy that she doesn't want to die a virgin, to which he replies something to the effect of "we'll both die as virgins together." The latter scene, however, only made it into the Special Edition DVD version of the film.
* ''[[Star Wars]]: [[The Empire Strikes Back]]''. As Han's about to be frozen in carbonite in order to test whether or not the process is survivable, Leia tells him that she loves him.
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* Played for laughs in ''[[The Blues Brothers]]''; two Illinois Nazis are falling to their deaths in a car, their eyes and mouths open in shock. One turns to the other and says "I've always loved you". The other Nazi simply looks at his lieutenant without changing his expression.
* In all three films of ''[[The Matrix]]'' trilogy. Inverted in the first film, in that Trinity knows Neo can't be dead [[Because Destiny Says So|because she loves him]]. Subverted in ''Reloaded'', {{spoiler|Trinity says "I'm sorry" before she [[Only Mostly Dead|dies.]]}} Played straight in ''Revolutions'', {{spoiler|as Trinity is [[Stuffed Into the Fridge|dying]] [[Killed Off for Real|for real this time]], she tells Neo that she regretted saying "I'm sorry" rather than "I love you" before she died the last time.}}
* ''[[
{{quote|
{{spoiler|'''Rapunzel''': And you were mine.}} }}
* ''Far and Away'': After Joseph gets crushed by a horse and hits his head on a rock, Shannon rushes to his side. He can feel himself slipping away, so he ends up confessing his love to her.
{{quote|
** After he dies, Shannon confesses that [[Love At First Sight|she loved him from the first time she saw him]]. [[Disney Death|He comes back to life]] and interrupts her with:
{{quote|
== Literature ==
* In one of the [[Belgariad]] books, Adara has been shot and believes herself to be dying. She confesses her unrequited love to Hettar, only to be told that she isn't dying after all. And that Hettar isn't going to let her pretend [[That Didn't Happen|it didn't happen]].
* In ''[[Chalion|The Curse of Chalion]]'', before Cazaril sets out on a suicide mission, he relays last minute instructions to his love interest, who is ignorant of his plans. Impulsively, he kisses her before he leaves to die. Later lampshaded by Lady Betriz:
{{quote|
* In Bruce Coville's ''Dark Whispers'', part of [[The Unicorn Chronicles]], Belle and Finder are ambushed and Finder is badly wounded. his last words are to Belle, saying, " I always thought you were beautiful" before dying in her.. well, not arms, as they are unicorns, but about as close as it gets.
== Live Action TV ==▼
* In ''[[The Mighty Boosh]]'' Howard declares his love for Vince, right before they are about to be killed by the Black Frost. Then the Black Frost is killed. Cue awkward silence.
* ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]''. B'Elanna Torres confesses her love for Tom Paris when they're both floating in space with their suits having just run out of oxygen. His response is semi-subversive: "You picked a great time to tell me." Moments later they're beamed to safety.
** And the holographic Doctor confesses his love for Seven of Nine (along with several other things, like the fact that he's compiled a list of Captain Janeway's worst command decisions) when he believes that his program is about to shut down permanently. Seconds later it's repaired, leaving a very embarrassed Doc.
** When he thinks he is going to die [[It Makes Sense in Context|Amelia Earhart's guide]] admits he loves her...only for the doc to tell him he'll be just fine.
* ''[[
* Similar scenario in ''[[
** {{spoiler|Gilina}} at the end of "A Hidden Memory". Though in this case, it was clear that she was in love with Crichton. She merely reaffirmed her love and [[Tear Jerker|asked if things had been different, could he have loved her. To which he replies "Yes".]]
* In ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'', on the verge of the Scoobies' latest attempt to stop [[The End of the World
** {{spoiler|Then again, she's right in the end, as he ends up leaving her at the altar.}}
** Also played straight when Xander and Willow are trapped by a villain who they believe will soon return to kill them, and have no hope of rescue. Their respective significant others then burst in with the heroic rescue, only to catch them making out.
** Subverted however in the finale {{spoiler|when Buffy tells Spike that she loves him as he's burning up in the sun. Spike just replies; "No you don't, but thanks for saying it."}}
** A different take on this appears in "Go Fish" when Cordelia thinks Xander has been turned into a [[Fish People|fish monster]].
{{quote|
'''Xander:''' (walking up behind her) Uh, Cordy? That's not me. }}
* Subverted/parodied in ''[[Caroline in The City]]'': Doped up and about to enter surgery, Richard admits to Caroline that he loves her. Shocked, Caroline asks him if it's true; he says it is... then gives the same drugged-out confession to the nurse.
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* Parodied in the second-to-last episode of ''[[Seinfeld]]'': The plane's going down, the series is ending, and Jerry and Elaine are about to reveal their true feelings for each other... when the plane levels off. They make a safe landing, the confessions go unsaid, and the series ends in a completely different manner.
* Mal and Inara to the letter, in the ''[[Firefly]]'' episode "Our Mrs. Reynolds". Saffron knocks Mal out with her sedative-laced lipstick, Inara finds Mal out cold and kisses him and begs him not to die before passing out herself. And of course, when they wake up, Mal misinterprets how Inara came to be knocked out, saying [[Completely Missing the Point|"I knew you]] [[Crowning Moment of Funny|let her kiss you."]]
* ''[[Captain Power and
* [[Stargate Atlantis]] episode "Thirty-Eight Minutes." The stargate-sized ship gets stuck in the wormhole while returning to Atlantis. The episode title is the established amount of time before the gate shuts down and everybody in the ship dies. Sheppard is about to tell Weir something, but is interrupted by somebody in a "I have a plan" moment. At the end of the episode, Weir asks him what he was going to say. He claims it was "take care of each other," but Weir is obviously unconvinced.
** In a later episode McKay confesses his love for Keller while losing his mind to Space Alzheimer's. Sadly, he doesn't remember this after he's cured.
* For the ''[[
** The Series 4 finale seems to imply he wanted to say {{spoiler|he loved her as well}} when he got cut off.
** The Doctor comes close to using this trope in another episode, also with Rose. Well, maybe.
{{quote|
* {{spoiler|Ianto}} in [[Wham! Episode|Day Four]] of the ''[[
* [[The Mentalist|Bosco and Lisbon, anyone?]]. [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|So]] [[Tear Jerker|damn]] [[No Hugging, No Kissing|tragic]].
* In [[Castle]], (warning: major S3 season finale spoilers follow!) {{spoiler|Beckett is shot during her eulogy at Montgomery's funeral. Castle pleads with her not to leave him, then finally says "I love you," just before she falls unconscious. Her [[Plot Armor]] will save her,}} but only time will tell how the rest of the trope plays out.
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== Tabletop Games ==
* Played straight in ''Doomtown'' with Corky Hendricks' last words.
* In ''[[Last Night
▲== Theater ==
* In the play ''[[Cyrano De Bergerac]]'', the titular character makes a deathbed confession to Roxanne that it was he who wrote the letters to her, not her dead husband, and that he loved her. This makes this [[Older Than Radio]].
** Sort of. It's more that he's just not quite sharp enough to keep up the lie, and she figures it out. She keeps needling him about it, but it's really more of a reluctant admission than a declaration, and it wasn't the dying so much that got him to confess.
* Éponine in [
** This being Les Mis, they have time to sing about it.
* In the third act of ''Götterdämmerung'' by [[Richard Wagner]], Siegfried - having been given an antidote to the potion that made him forget about his love for her - relieves his first kiss with Brünhild in his dying moments after Hagen stabs him in the back. Later on, Brünhild, who co-engineered Siegfried's death, makes a huge declaration of her love for Siegfried before she leaps into his funeral pyre.
== Video Games ==
* Averted in ''[[Mass Effect]]''. If you're playing Commander Shepard as a male character and are following the Ashley romance subplot, you get this conversation immediately after the sex scene, but before you've decided whether this is a one-time 'impending-death-exception' thing or you will continue to pursue your relationship against all the various social & legal obstacles between you (You ''are'' her commanding officer, after all). All this as you're only a few minutes from dropping onto a hostile world against impossible odds to confront the boss villain:
{{quote|
** Played straight in the Liara relationship storyline, where she thanks the Commander for everything after the sex scene.
* In ''[[
* In one of the possible "false endings" of ''[[Odin Sphere]]'', Mercedes confesses her feelings to Ingway with her last breath.
** It's also inverted earlier, as {{spoiler|Melvin's}} last words is to proclaim to {{spoiler|Oswald}} that he always hated him and never felt any parental love for him at all.
* Near the finale of ''[[Tales of Symphonia
* In ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
* In ''[[Prey]]'', Tommy tells Jen he loves her after {{spoiler|[[Kill the Ones You Love|he is forced to kill her]]}}. Yes, to her {{spoiler|dead body}}.
* Some ''[[Fire Emblem]]'' characters' death quotes do briefer versions of this, mainly in [[Fire Emblem Akaneia|the Akaneia games]] where there's only one possible pairing for any given character if at all. It's also a recurring tendency for cases of [[Love Makes You Evil|lovestruck antagonists]].
* Parodied in a cinematic of the original ''[[
=== Visual Novels ===
* In ''[[Fate/stay
** An earlier example could be Shirou's first vocal declaration to Saber. He's been stabbed through the chest, and is about to go up against [[The Epic of Gilgamesh|THE strongest fighter]] in the whole Grail War [[Curb Stomp Battle|who just wiped the floor with]] [[Lady of War|Saber]] [[One-Hit Kill|in one shot.]] [[Heroic Sacrifice|Shirou must have known]] [[Senseless Sacrifice|he was going to die but]]:
{{quote|
'''Shirou''' SHUT UP! ....Just... be quiet for a second... You can rely on others... rely on...
'''Saber''' You're wrong. You're more important than me, your life is more important, so you should take care-"
'''Shirou''' ''I want you more than anything else!'' There's not one thing that can replace you. Sorry, I... I like you the most out of everything. So I'm not going to let a guy like ''him'' take you! }}
** {{spoiler|Luckily, Shirou has [[Healing Factor|Avalon]].}}
==
* Played with in the [[Web Comic]] ''[[
▲* Played with in the [[Web Comic]] ''[[Order of the Stick (Webcomic)|Order of the Stick]]'', in [http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0184.html this strip]. {{spoiler|(The ''actual'' confession comes much later, in a much different way.)}}
** And then somewhat played straight, somewhat averted in [http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0593.html this strip] when {{spoiler|Elan refuses to profess false love to Therkla to convince her to resurrect later}}
*** It goes [[Tear Jerker|a step further]]: in D&D, you can always choose to fail a saving throw.
* [[Kid Radd]] plays the "We're going to die, so..." and stops right before the kiss (as it turns out they'll live after all). Naturally, they hang a lampshade on it.
{{quote|
* Subverted in ''[[Angels 2200]]'', as Hammer is unable to [[Anguished Declaration of Love|tell Kid about her feelings for her]], largely because of their [[Unequal Pairing|relationship as leader and subordinate]]. She is shown saying it when preparing to stay behind as part of a [[Heroic Sacrifice]], but then it's revealed that it's merely what she '''wants''' to say and that she realizes that it is not the right time to do so, and she makes a face-saving line about "loving" Kid's hair. {{spoiler|Potentially doubly subverted when it turns out that Hammer is, in fact, alive. We have yet to see where this goes in Angels 2.0}}.
* In ''[[
* Occured in a ''[[Nuzlocke Comics]]'' fan run: {{spoiler|Bruce Wayne's Platinum Nuzlocke}}, to be precise. Being a Nuzlocke run, the reciever of the confession had just been [[Killed Off for Real]], leading to the [[Tear Jerker|depressing question]] of...
{{quote|
== Web Original ==
* In a deleted scene from ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The
{{quote|'''Bakura''': Marik, I... I hate you. I hate you with all my heart. I hate you more than I've ever hated anybody. I hate you so much I can barely take it. In fact, I want to go on hating you for the rest of my life. And if our world is destroyed, well, I won't be able to hate you anymore.
▲* In a deleted scene from ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series (Web Video)|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]'' episode 46, Marik and Florence get a [[Dying Declaration of Love|Dying Declaration of]] ''[[Foe Yay|Hate]]'' as they are about to be killed by Melvin. ...a moment which is quickly [[Moment Killer|killed]] by [[Transparent Closet|Marik]] [[Have I Mentioned I Am Heterosexual Today?|insisting he's straight.]]
'''
'''Marik''': Yes! Wait a second, are you coming on to me? I already told you, Bakura, [[Blatant Lies|I'm not gay!]] }}
== Western Animation ==
* Played straight in Disney's ''[[Beauty and The Beast]]''.
* In one episode of ''[[The Simpsons (
* ''[[Hey Arnold!]]'': Helga, when she's mistakenly diagnosed herself with a fatal illness, decides to confess her love to Arnold. Phoebe interrupts her at the last minute, but Arnold still looks suspicious, so she tries to cover it up with her being delirious and out of her mind. Naturally, [[Snap Back|it works]].
* Played straight in ''[[
** It gets taken a BIT too literally...Meet Tigerhawk, the result of those two sparks being captured by the Evil Aliens and fused together into an incredibly powerful Transformer sent back down to Earth to take out Megatron for messing up the timestream. And then die again.
* ''[[Captain Planet and
* In the second season of ''[[
{{quote|
'''Dot:''' I know, Bob. I know. }}
* ''[[The Avengers: Earth's
* ''[[Hazbin Hotel]]''; {{spoiler| after [[Cannot Spit It Out| several failed attempts to spit it out]] to Cherri Bomb, Sir Pentious finally tells her he loves her in the season one finale with a [[Big Damn Kiss]], right before he boards his zepplin to make a kamikaze attack on Adam and the Exorcists.}}
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Death Tropes]]
[[Category:Romance Arc]]
[[Category:Love Tropes]]
[[Category:Romantic Resolutions]]
[[Category:
▲[[Category:Trope]]
|